Meredith Loch (Hybird)
Meredith A. Loch (b. 13 July, 1980 – d. 31 July, 2000) was a half-blood witch, the only child of Euan Loch and Preeda Loch (née Insee). She attended Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry from 1991-1998 and was sorted into Slytherin House, becoming a prefect in her fifth year and Head Girl in her seventh. The Loch family name, though excluded from the Sacred Twenty-Eight, and hiding under the false pretense of being a pure-blood, helped her to befriend others in her house, namely Theodore Nott, Daphne Greengrass, and much later, Draco Malfoy. Over the winter holiday of her sixth year, Meredith mistakenly attended a Christmas party held at Malfoy Manor, which turned out to be a gathering to formally pledge one's allegiance to Lord Voldemort. There, she and number of her housemates obliged to stomp out Harry Potter's supporters at Hogwarts the next term. After the attack on the Ministry in 1998, she was chosen to fill one of the Death Eater's vacancies and served Voldemort up until the Strike on Switzerland, where she released the imprisoned muggleborns, including Niahm Cassidy, her former classmate and friend. Biography Early life (1980-1991) Meredith was born on July 13, 1980, to Euan and Preeda Loch — her father from a pure-blood family of kelpie tamers, and her mother a muggle, who died giving birth. The Lochs were typically known to be sorted into Hufflepuff. In the absence of her mother, Meredith was raised by her father and great aunt Ainsley. Ainsley, then the only Slytherin in the family, tried to instill her with traditional pure-blood beliefs that clashed with the rest of the Loch's muggle-friendly view on life. As a half-blood, she felt torn between the two perspectives, and often switched between them depending on the environment. At age eight, Meredith was used to swimming in the Loch against her parents' word and established a closeness with Nessie, the Loch Ness Monster, as the giant kelpie dragged her away from one of Voldemort's drowned inferi stuck in the loch, which had spurred to life when she swam near it. First Year (1991-1992) Meredith went to King's Cross on 1 September, 1991 and shared a cabin with Theodore Nott and Daphne Greengrass. She was resigned to be in Hufflepuff, as the rest of her family was, but was envious the other two were certain of being in Slytherin, which, because of Ainsley, she believed to be the best house. At the sorting ceremony, the Sorting Hat commented she'd be right at home in Hufflepuff, but that there was a chance for more in Slytherin. Meredith, not expecting to be told of other options, jumped at the chance to be in another house. Physical appearance Meredith was fairly shorter than most of her friends, with thick, dark hair, hazel eyes, and a round nose bridged with freckles. Despite her height, Pansy described her as lanky because of her long arms. Around her third year, she began using Sleakeazy's Hair Potion regularly, like the rest of her dorm mates. When she didn't, she left it in a braid. Personality and traits Meredith was a very guarded person in keeping her heritage from spilling out, but having been the black sheep of the family, still prioritized finding security in a group of friends. Daphne often said she should've gone to Ravenclaw for being so engrossed during their widely hated History of Magic lessons, but she knew she'd been sorted into Slytherin for her evasive cunning and action only when odds were in her favor. She leaned heavily on the tactic of being sweetly polite so no one would suspect her of hiding anything, like her blood status. Meredith was also keen observer with a good memory, as she liked to figure out as much about a person to get on with them better, especially in class, but rarely bothered making friends outside her house, once she'd felt secure enough. Other students thought her too polite for the company she kept, though she did occasionally laugh along with Slytherins' mean jokes. Around her friends, she was more of a jester, enjoying banter with Draco, Theo, Daphne, Blaise, and Pansy, regardless of their apparent distaste for each other. Despite her seemingly cool exterior, Meredith found most of her thoughts humorously stupid, joking, "If I were a boy, I would swoon over an idiot like me." In her free time, Meredith was a bit of a craftswoman, studying and practicing Transfiguration to make things she could sell. When her family was starting to become financially strained, she took advantage of the Tri-Wizard tournament by selling students things they could wear to support their champions, and sending most of the money home. Her mind was well matched for Transfiguration, as she soaked it up the most compared to classes like Herbology, Defense, and Flying. She thought of trying for a Hogwarts position once McGonnagall had retired, but the war upturned her career path. Magical abilities and skills *'Transfiguration': Meredith was one of the most talented Transfigurers in her year, earning the highest marks, an O on her O.W.L. examination, and advancing to N.E.W.T. level. She began animagus training under McGonagall at the beginning of her fifth year, and was able to fully transform into a moth by the end of her seventh. Her Transfiguration skills also greatly helped her in the process of animating inferi. She was skilled at conjuring and vanishing things as well, as she could conjure exact replicas of herself to make a quick escape. *'Charms': Meredith was adept at the subject, receiving an E on her examination. She knew how to cast the Scuba-Spell and Aqua Eructo Charm before arriving at Hogwarts, mostly due to her family's role as kelpie tamers. *'Dark Magic': Though merely an area of interest in her Hogwart's days, Meredith went to extreme depths during the war, successfully creating her own army of inferi to counter Voldemort's. The aftereffects of the process cost her the ability to sleep naturally, and she relied on Sleeping Draught heavily thereafter. She was capable of casting the Killing Curse and the Imperius Curse, but never attempted the Cruciatus Curse. * Possessions *'Wand': Meredith's wand was 11½", made from larch, and paired with a dragon heartstring core. According to Garrick Ollivander, its was "''quite flexible."'' She was slightly bothered that it was curved at the end, as it made it harder for her to accurately aim spells. Her second wand, which she rarely used, belonged to her great aunt. It was of unknown length, but made from elm wood and contained a stand of hair from the Loch Ness Monster. *'Dress robes': Meredith owned a set of jade green dress robes she wore to the Yule Ball. She also owned a set of black dress robes she liked to transfigure to match the occasion. *'Family ring': At seventeen, Meredith received the Loch family ring, thought to be lost with her great grandfather's death. The ring was made of sterling silver and embedded with a cairngorn stone, a type of smoky quartz native to the Cairngorn Caves of Scotland. It was said to have given the wearer clarity during distressing times. Relationships Theodore Nott Theodore Nott was Meredith's first and greatest friend. They met on the the train at King's Cross in their first year, sharing a compartment with Daphne Greengrass. After being sorted, they became fast friends, bonding over their shared interest in Transfiguration and from being partners in most classes. Meredith thought of Theo as her brother, and had Ainsley Loch accepted Cantankerus Nott's hand in marriage, they would have been related by blood. Draco Malfoy Meredith had always entertained the thought of being friends with Draco, but was put off by his arrogant, attention seeking behavior. In their third year, she visited him in the hospital wing after he was injured by Buckbeak, and after that they began talking to each other more. By her fourth year, Draco, rekindling his childhood friendship with Theo, began to spend more time with her, Daphne, Blaise, and Pansy, instead of Crabbe and Goyle. At the Yule Ball, Draco asked her to dance to escape Pansy and she accepted, as her date, Blaise, was flirting with another girl. Over the summer, they wrote to each other frequently, and Meredith found herself liking the honest Draco from her letters. When Draco and Pansy started dating, she felt unreasonably jealous, but poured herself into Transfiguration lessons in her pursuit to become an animagus. Daphne Greengrass Ainsley Loch Meredith's relationship with her great aunt was conflicting. Meredith found Ainsley patronizing, high strung, but also wise and candid. Ainsley would always call upon her for lessons, whether magical or philosophical, which she always sat through begrudgingly. The two shared many of the same values aside from pure blood superiority, and Meredith always felt that if she wasn't a half blood, she and Ainsley would've been much closer. Jamie Fawley Niamh Cassidy Meredith first encountered Niamh in an empty hallway in her second year. Niamh, a fourth year and unlikely parselmouth, had fallen to the floor clutching her ears in an attempt to block out the Basilisk's voice. Meredith helped her to the infirmary, and Niamh swore her to secrecy to avoid involvement in the Heir of Slytherin rumour going around. Hom Loch Euan Loch Minerva McGonagall Meredith always secretly considered Minerva to be her favourite teacher, as she taught her favourite class. But despite getting the best marks in Transfiguration, it was clear that Hermione Granger was still the prized student. Meredith ended up following in Minerva's footsteps (even though their academic work ethics and attitudes vastly differed), becoming prefect and then Head Girl, which she was sure Minerva was discontented by. Etymology * Meredith ''is a traditionally male, Welsh name, meaning "great lord." It could alternatively mean "guardian of the sea." * ''Loch, ''in Scottish, is a name given for someone who lived near a loch or lake. Behind the scenes * Meredith's middle name, initialed with an A., is unknown. Though, because it's mentioned to be Thai in nature, it's been speculated by some that the A stands for ''Apinya, meaning "magical power," as a nod to her being a witch. * Meredith was originally to be named Gwen. The author, however, couldn't decide on which variation to use: Gwendolin (the original choice), Gwendoline, Gwendolyn, Gwellian, Gwenda, Gwennan, etc., before scrapping it completely. Part of the decision was because of existing characters with the name already: Gwenog Jones and Gwendoline Babcocke. * Davika Hoorne was set to be the face of then, Gwendolin Loch, but the change in names also brought a change of faces. Ultimately, the role was given to Violette Wautier. Wautier coming from Thai and French heritage, mirrored Meredith's own background of a Thai mother and European (Scottish) father. * Meredith's future was greatly affected by Dumbledore and Theodore's use of time turners. Dumbledore revealed that in most timelines she had gone to Hufflepuff, and was kept safer for it. The timeline Theodore sought to change was one in which Daphne, Draco, and Meredith (supposedly) all died. * Ainsley Loch married Marius Black, a squib disowned by the the Black family. Marius took the Loch name to formally detach from his family, but still found himself miserable being married to a witch. He left Ainsley for a muggle woman and had non-magical children, to whom he passed on the Loch name. Cantankerus Nott, who'd been rejected by Ainsley, purposefully left the Lochs off the pure-blood registry after word got out about Marius' muggle family, even though they were only Lochs in name, and not blood. Category:1980 births Category:Unregistered Animagi Category:Battle of Hogwarts participants Category:Blood traitors Category:Department of Magical Accidents and Catastrophes personnel Category:Obliviators Category:Slytherins Category:Half-bloods Category:Hatstalls Category:Head Girls Category:Hogwarts prefects Category:Scottish people Category:Asian people Category:Death Eaters Category:Sorted in 1991 Category:Unforgivable curse users Category:Spell inventors Category:Time travelers Category:Loch family Category:Wizards Category:Females Category:Deceased Category:Slug Club